


Tu m'as manqué.

by LadyMorganaShire



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-24
Updated: 2017-12-24
Packaged: 2019-02-19 16:12:09
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,834
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13127205
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LadyMorganaShire/pseuds/LadyMorganaShire
Summary: Years ago, Chat Noir messed up and pushed Ladybug away, but fate is always there to bring them back together.





	Tu m'as manqué.

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Lily](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lily/gifts).



> This is Lily's Secret Santa present. 
> 
> You wanted MariChat, I did my very best! 
> 
> Joyeux Noël! <3

Adrien sighed and leaned back into the couch. Marinette’s flat was comfortable and warm, it would have been so easy to fall asleep, but he didn’t want to. He knew it would somehow make things awkward between them again and he had fought so hard to erase his mistakes that there was no way he was going to screw everything up again. 

Beside him, Nino started snoring. At least he wasn’t the only one tired, even if he was the only one fighting the urge to sleep. He could hear Marinette play with the kids in her guest bedroom, their squeals and laughter warming his heart. She was good with kids, always cheery and good spirited even though she’d been anything but happy in the last five years. 

The only thing he knew was that she’d been in love with someone, and that guy had broken her heart. Said guy deserved a good kick to the guts and a punch in the face for doing that, but she’d refused to tell him the name. He knew Alya knew more than him, and if Alya did, Nino did too, but if she didn’t want him to, he wouldn’t pry. 

A particularly loud scream woke Nino up with a start. 

“They’re still playing Dude, go back to sleep,” Adrien told him with a smirk. 

“Was I sleeping? Oh man… I really need to sleep more at night, these patrols are killing me.”

Adrien nodded, being a father and patrolling at night was hard. he was lucky he had Nino and Alya‘s help. As Carapace and Rena Rouge, they were great allies to keep the city safe and even if Ladybug’s absence still weighed on his heart, at least he wasn’t alone anymore. He still missed her every day, wondering where and who she was, if she was alright, if she had found someone better than him to make her happy. He hoped so. She deserved better than what he had given her. 

He could still remember her face the night she had told him she could no longer work with him, that seeing him every night hurt her too much. He should have waited for her, she’d told him to wait for her, just a little bit more, just until they had defeated Hawkmoth, but he hadn’t, he had been too impatient, and needed someone to love him, someone to make him feel good so he could forget how hard his life was, how lonely he always felt. Célia had been a good girlfriend back then, making him feel good and happy for a while, until they defeated Hawkmoth, his father, until Ladybug told him she had watched him date that girl that made him happy for the past five months, her heart breaking a little more every time he spoke of her with a large smile and happy words, until she told him she couldn’t go on like that. 

A few days later, Plagg had told him the Ladybug Miraculous had been deactivated, and it meant she was no longer wearing it. Ladybug was gone, and his life had taken a bad turn again. 

Even though his father had not been arrested, Ladybug had asked him not to tell anyone, he didn’t trust the man anymore. He hadn’t moved out of the manor right then, because he needed money to do so, but as soon as he had enough, he’d left and hadn’t looked back. By then he’d been engaged to Célia, because she was the only one he had left.   
Oh, he still had Nino and Alya, and Marinette, but the former ones were taking care of a very heartbroken Marinette who had been hurt by the love of her life. At that time, he had rolled his eyes, but five years later, he didn’t find it that idiotic anymore. She hadn’t been able to move on, had never allowed herself to fall for anyone else than this stupid guy who seemed to have found better than her. Better than Marinette… What a jerk. 

Now he was alone, Célia had left him and Tiffany, their child, as soon as the little girl had been old enough to live without a mother, to pursue a man with more money than he had. Oh he was still rich, his father never cut him off, he just wanted to live a simple life and it wasn’t enough for the Queen that was Célia Quartier… She was almost worse than Chloé, and to this day he still wondered how he had not seen it sooner, how he had been able to give up on Ladybug for a woman like her. 

Through the years, Marinette had been there to help him, to take care of Tiffany when he had to work or needed to rest, and she had been wonderful. He had even been able to let go of the guilt and the pain of losing Ladybug and had, slowly but surely, fallen in love with the baker’s daughter. 

He was probably cursed to end his life alone with his little girl, he thought with a dejected smile. Marinette didn’t seem to have any intention of letting go of that bastard who didn’t deserve her. 

“She’s so good with the kids…” He hadn’t realized he’d said that out loud until Nino snorted. 

“You have it bad Bro… Be careful, you know she doesn’t want to be with anyone anymore.”

“I know… I’m not about to ask her out again, it was hard enough for things to go back to normal the last time.” Adrien sighed. It still hurt. “If all I can have is her friendship, it will have to be enough.” 

Nino knew how much Adrien loved her, Nino knew that losing her would be worse than only being her friend, and both of them knew that it was all that would be said tonight. 

About half an hour of Tiffany and Lucas’s laughter and Alya was there to pick up her son and her husband after her day of work. A quick conversation with Marinette and a few hugs and they were all on their way. While Nino was holding Lucas and Alya had Tiffany in her arms, Adrien stayed behind for a few minutes. 

“Thank you, Mari. I’m sorry we keep calling you like that…”

She gave him a large smile. “You know I love them and spending time with them after wordays with your father is a breath of fresh air.” Adrien nodded with a smile, he knew his father was hard on her, but he also knew the man liked her in his own way, because she was good at what she did. 

Adrien watched as her smile grew forced and she started wringing her hands. “Look, Adrien… I’m sorry… I heard you talk to Nino and… I’m really sorry... “

It took Adrien a few minutes to reassure her that he was, indeed, fine and that what he'd said was true. He loved her enough to be content with just her friendship. He knew she wasn't convinced, and she knew it hurt him, it was clear on her face that it hurt her too, but that was how it was going to be, until she would be able to forget that guy. 

The drive back was silent. Tiffany had decided to ride with her best friend, and Adrien found himself alone in the car for the twenty minutes long drive to the Lahiffe apartment. 

Once there, they sat at the table, letting the two kids play together a little more. 

Alya had been silent for a while, lost in thought, swirling the coffee around the cup, the spoon hitting the porcelain regularly. 

“Do you think it could be Ladybug?” She asked softly. When he heard the name, Adrien looked up to her suddenly. 

“What?” 

“The person that hurt Mari. Think about it, she started acting that way at the same time Ladybug disappeared… Maybe… Maybe it's her… She never said it was a man I just assumed because of her gigantic crush on you…”

Alya seemed to be lost in thought, and Adrien had stopped functioning. Her crush on him? Marinette used to have a crush on him… 

Beside him, Nino snickered. “You broke him, babe!”

“You really are dense! You're the only one who didn't see it! It was so obvious!”

“Mari had a crush on me?”

“Dude!” Nino laughed. “She would go red and babble like an idiot, everyone knew…”

“Yeah and she stopped suddenly. I know she knew Ladybug… I just…”

Ladybug wasn't in love with Marinette, she had been in love with him. What if he had prevented them from being happy together? The thought that he might have been indirectly one of the causes of Marinette’s pain was unbearable. 

“What did she tell you, when you talked about that person?” He asked Alya. 

“Well… She said they had been in front of her all the time, and that she hadn't been ready, I still don't know why. And they ended up not waiting for her.”

Not waiting for her… Not waiting for her… 

Adrien got up so suddenly that his chair fell back with a loud bang, making the other two jump in surprise. 

“You said it started when Ladybug disappeared?” He shot urgently.

“Well, yes and no. One day her huge crush on you just ended,” Alya said slowly, oblivious to Adrien’s internal struggle. “She just didn’t seem to feel anything more than friendship towards you, but when you started dating the bitch…” Nino snorted at that, “Well, she started changing, she looked sad when she thought no one was watching. I asked her if I should kick your ass but she was genuinely happy for you. It obviously wasn’t you… And then, well, you remember how bad it went. At the time I assumed that Ladybug’s disappearance had hit her because they were friends but… Adrien? You okay?”

He wasn’t. His legs felt like jelly, his heart was racing, blood pounding in his ears. For a moment, all the different feelings that rushed through him threatened to overwhelm him and he tried to sit, forgetting that his chair had been knocked sideways. Thankfully, Nino caught him just in time. 

“Dude? You okay? You’re scaring me…”

“It’s me… Nino it was me, ME!” He gripped his friend’s shoulder and shook him a little, trying to get his point across before realizing that it didn’t matter. “Can you take care of Tiff tonight, please? I need to… God, I need to talk to her!”

Both Nino and Alya nodded. He got up, his legs still shaky, and went in search of his daughter in the other room. The little girl didn’t mind staying with her friend, she was used to it, and after overly long and tight hugs, he left the apartment through the window, his black suit shining in the moonlight. 

Going to Marinette’s place was faster when jumping from roof to roof, and he found himself there too fast, unsure of what to tell her. “I’m sorry” wouldn’t be enough, but it was a start.

He was about to drop down the side of the building to detransform and enter as himself when he heard quiet sniffles. His cat ears twitched, following the sound. It led him to Marinette’s balcony, where she was sitting on the floor, legs up against her chest, arms around her knees and her head resting on them. He landed beside her silently and sat right next to her. The night was cold and the thin viscose of her blouse wasn’t enough to keep her warm. 

She didn’t move when he drew her against him, holding her tight, instead her hands closed around his arms and she brought him closer. She leaned her head against his chest sniffling once more. 

“Are you okay?” As soon as the words left his mouth, Chat Noir realized it was a stupid question. “Of course you aren’t… You wouldn’t be crying if you were. Sorry that was stupid, I shouldn’t have asked and…”

The sound of her laughter stopped him in his rambling. “It’s fine. I just....” She sighed. “I hurt someone I care a lot about today. Again. I’m tired of doing it but I don’t know what else to do…”

“We all hurt others at some point in our lives, the fact that you want to change that is a good start,” he answered, resting his cheek on her head. He hadn’t. He’d been there to notice how bad some days had been without knowing he had caused it, without realizing the guy he cursed day after day was no other than himself. 

She was sad about hurting him, about pushing him away, and all along, he’d been at fault. Chat closed his eyes tightly to keep his tears away. He didn’t feel like he deserved the comfort she would no doubt give him. 

“Chat?” Her voice was small and hesitant. “Are you happy?” 

Was he? He wasn’t sure. 

“I could be… I messed up a lot of things, hurt and lost someone I love. But I as much as it hurt, I would do it again, because while I deeply regret hurting her, I gained someone I wouldn’t be able to live without anymore.”

Her sharp intake of breath made him rethink his decision. He’d hurt her again. He needed to tell her, he needed her to understand that he wouldn’t be able to give up on Tiffany even if it meant having her. 

“You know, don’t you?” She asked softly. He nodded against her head, his mask catching a few strands of her hair. “How long?”

He sighed. Again. “Not even an hour. I came as soon as I… I’m sorry, My Lady…”

“How?” She seemed to be trying to be closer to him, moving until her face was pressed against his neck. He felt her tears wet his skin and reached up to wipe them away with his thumb. 

“Close your eyes,” he whispered. 

“Chat?”

“Please.”

He watched her eyes flutter closed, her long, dark lashes casting shadows on her pale cheeks. 

He dropped his transformation, immediately feeling the bite of the cold air around them and held Marinette closer. 

“I'm sorry, I hurt you. I'm sorry I didn't wait. I needed to have someone there, and I didn't realize you were.”

“It's in the past,” she said, her eyes still closed. “I shouldn't have left, but it was so hard… I missed you.”

“I missed you too, even though you were right in front of me all along.”

He could almost see the cogs moving inside her head. When she finally opened her eyes, she already knew who he was.   
He could see in her eyes every single emotion going through her heart. Pain, fear, regret were quickly replaced by something he hadn't seen on her face in a while. 

Her smile didn't stay long though. Suddenly she got up and started looking around. 

“Where is she? Where is Tiffany?”

“With Nino and Alya. Don't worry, she’s probably eating sweets and running them ragged right now.”

He got up, careful not to get too close in case she didn't want him to. 

“They know? They know!” She was quick at working things through, her years as Ladybug were no doubt helping her understand the situation. “Carapace and Rena Rouge…”

He nodded. It felt good telling her. It felt good knowing she was one of them. Even if she hadn't been Ladybug for a long time, she had been the best of them, the leader. He knew it would take time for her to forgive him, they would have to have a really long talk, and he knew he would have to be completely honest with her, but when she laughed and took a step forward, pressing herself against him, he knew they would be okay. 

“You were right there. All this time you were right there helping me get through this,” she whispered. 

They talked all night. They talked about Tikki and how angry she was with Marinette for taking off the earrings, they talked of the pain Marinette had felt, the feelings of not being good enough and left behind that had caged her heart for a long time, they talked until they fell asleep, pressed against each other on top of the covers. 

Early the next morning, Alya woke them with the sound of her phone and her high pitched squeal, Tiffany jumped on the bed and hugged them hard and Nino just made fun of them. 

Marinette would be a good mother for Tiffany, who desperately needed one, and for the two other children they had later, she would also be a wonderful wife and he would do his best to make up for his mistakes and make her happy. They would laugh at Alya over her thinking Marinette had been in love with herself. And over Adrien losing it in their kitchen. Later, they would be happy.

**Author's Note:**

> This has not been beta read and has been written mostly between work hours, sorry for any mystakes, and typos.


End file.
